Nostromo SpeedPad n52
Encyclopedia
The Belkin Nostromo SpeedPad n52 is a USB
computer gaming peripheral designed for gamer
s by Belkin
. It is likely named after the fictional starship Nostromo from the 1979 film Alien
, which was in turn named after the 1904 novel Nostromo
.
It can be considered a keyboard
/joystick
/mouse
hybrid, which allows for a more convenient control method for many video games. It can also be used outside of games, for example to support cartographic software. It is the followup to the older SpeedPad n50, and is also intended to replace the keyboard during gaming.
The device is currently supported under Windows
98, 2000, ME, XP (both 32- and 64-bit versions), and Vista (both 32- and 64-bit versions).http://www.belkin.com/support/article/?lid=en&pid=F8GFPC100&aid=5234&scid=0 Additionally, the Windows Vista driver can be used to install the device on a Windows 7 system and retain all functionality.
It is also supported under Mac OS
9.04 or later, and Mac OS X
v10.1.2 up to 10.4.8. The programming software does work on Intel-based Macs. Intel Mac drivers are supplied.http://web.belkin.com/support/download/downloaddetails.asp?download=2100 The n52 requires a Pentium 233 MHz or equivalent with 32MB RAM, as well as 30MB free hard drive space.
A large space is used for a keyboard-like section with 14 keyboard keys, numbered 1 through 14, by default used to represent the WASD space on regular keyboards in the case of first-person shooter
s, one of the intended target audiences of the n52. These keys can be controlled with the users second to fifth fingers. Below where the thumb rests, there is a slightly wider keyboard-style button, labeled 15, similar in use to the shift key
on regular keyboards.
On the right side of the device, there is a scroll-wheel, like those normally found on mice, which can be controlled with the index finger. To the right of that, there is a round button
, as well as an 8-way D-pad
normally found on gamepad
s, intended to be used with the thumb.
. The n52 has 4 different color-coded states, indicated by 3 LEDs
below the fifteenth button. If a user changes the state of the device from the normal one, the red, green, or blue LED lights up, and all other controls now represent a different function. The state-button can be set to act as a temporary shift button that works while it is pressed, a toggle button, or it can be set to work until it is pressed again. In total, this allows up to 104 different functions. The software can recognize games by their executable filename
s, and automatically load the appropriate profile when that game is started. User-created profiles, which are technically single files, can be submitted to Belkin via e-mail, making them available for others to download.
The ability to add macros allows users to more easily work with data in spreadsheets and similar programs by creating a row of: Cut, Copy, Paste, and Enter keys, and by making the D-pad emulate the arrow keys.
.
Since the n52te was released however, many fans of the original have voiced their concerns that the n52te is lacking several features that were present in the original n52, mostly within the profiling software produced by Razer which has been criticized by owners of the original as being significantly less sophisticated than the original Belkin software.
Examples of missing features are:
Universal Serial Bus
USB is an industry standard developed in the mid-1990s that defines the cables, connectors and protocols used in a bus for connection, communication and power supply between computers and electronic devices....
computer gaming peripheral designed for gamer
Gamer
Historically, the term "gamer" usually referred to someone who played role-playing games and wargames. Since they became very popular, the term has included players of video games...
s by Belkin
Belkin
Belkin International, Inc., is a Californian manufacturer of computer hardware that specializes in connectivity devices, headquartered in Playa Vista, Los Angeles, California...
. It is likely named after the fictional starship Nostromo from the 1979 film Alien
Alien (film)
Alien is a 1979 science fiction horror film directed by Ridley Scott and starring Tom Skerritt, Sigourney Weaver, Veronica Cartwright, Harry Dean Stanton, John Hurt, Ian Holm and Yaphet Kotto. The film's title refers to its primary antagonist: a highly aggressive extraterrestrial creature which...
, which was in turn named after the 1904 novel Nostromo
Nostromo
Nostromo is a 1904 novel by Polish-born British novelist Joseph Conrad, set in the fictitious South American republic of "Costaguana." It was originally published serially in two volumes of T.P.'s Weekly....
.
It can be considered a keyboard
Computer keyboard
In computing, a keyboard is a typewriter-style keyboard, which uses an arrangement of buttons or keys, to act as mechanical levers or electronic switches...
/joystick
Joystick
A joystick is an input device consisting of a stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle or direction to the device it is controlling. Joysticks, also known as 'control columns', are the principal control in the cockpit of many civilian and military aircraft, either as a center stick or...
/mouse
Mouse (computing)
In computing, a mouse is a pointing device that functions by detecting two-dimensional motion relative to its supporting surface. Physically, a mouse consists of an object held under one of the user's hands, with one or more buttons...
hybrid, which allows for a more convenient control method for many video games. It can also be used outside of games, for example to support cartographic software. It is the followup to the older SpeedPad n50, and is also intended to replace the keyboard during gaming.
The device is currently supported under Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
98, 2000, ME, XP (both 32- and 64-bit versions), and Vista (both 32- and 64-bit versions).http://www.belkin.com/support/article/?lid=en&pid=F8GFPC100&aid=5234&scid=0 Additionally, the Windows Vista driver can be used to install the device on a Windows 7 system and retain all functionality.
It is also supported under Mac OS
Mac OS
Mac OS is a series of graphical user interface-based operating systems developed by Apple Inc. for their Macintosh line of computer systems. The Macintosh user experience is credited with popularizing the graphical user interface...
9.04 or later, and Mac OS X
Mac OS X
Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems...
v10.1.2 up to 10.4.8. The programming software does work on Intel-based Macs. Intel Mac drivers are supplied.http://web.belkin.com/support/download/downloaddetails.asp?download=2100 The n52 requires a Pentium 233 MHz or equivalent with 32MB RAM, as well as 30MB free hard drive space.
Features
The n52 is made in a black and silver design with a few orange accents. It features a rubber-coated base, and is weighed down with a metal weight for stability. The user must place his left hand on the device to use it, as it was designed for right-handed people, who usually use a mouse with their right hands. The n52 has a movable hand rest which can be set to 2 locations or removed to create 3 different hand positions to better suit various hand sizes by means of lifting the rest off the unit.A large space is used for a keyboard-like section with 14 keyboard keys, numbered 1 through 14, by default used to represent the WASD space on regular keyboards in the case of first-person shooter
First-person shooter
First-person shooter is a video game genre that centers the gameplay on gun and projectile weapon-based combat through first-person perspective; i.e., the player experiences the action through the eyes of a protagonist. Generally speaking, the first-person shooter shares common traits with other...
s, one of the intended target audiences of the n52. These keys can be controlled with the users second to fifth fingers. Below where the thumb rests, there is a slightly wider keyboard-style button, labeled 15, similar in use to the shift key
Shift key
The shift key is a modifier key on a keyboard, used to type capital letters and other alternate "upper" characters. There are typically two shift keys, on the left and right sides of the row below the home row...
on regular keyboards.
On the right side of the device, there is a scroll-wheel, like those normally found on mice, which can be controlled with the index finger. To the right of that, there is a round button
Button (control)
A push-button or simply button is a simple switch mechanism for controlling some aspect of a machine or a process. Buttons are typically made out of hard material, usually plastic or metal. The surface is usually flat or shaped to accommodate the human finger or hand, so as to be easily depressed...
, as well as an 8-way D-pad
D-pad
A D-pad is a flat, usually thumb-operated directional control with one button on each point, found on nearly all modern video game console gamepads, game controllers, on the remote control units of some television and DVD players, and smart phones...
normally found on gamepad
Gamepad
A gamepad , is a type of game controller held in two hands, where the digits are used to provide input. Gamepads generally feature a set of action buttons handled with the right thumb and a direction controller handled with the left...
s, intended to be used with the thumb.
Programming
All of these controls can be programmed with the included "Nostromo Array Programming Software" to emulate any keyboard function or keyboard macro. They can also be programmed to change the device's "state"State (computer science)
In computer science and automata theory, a state is a unique configuration of information in a program or machine. It is a concept that occasionally extends into some forms of systems programming such as lexers and parsers....
. The n52 has 4 different color-coded states, indicated by 3 LEDs
Light-emitting diode
A light-emitting diode is a semiconductor light source. LEDs are used as indicator lamps in many devices and are increasingly used for other lighting...
below the fifteenth button. If a user changes the state of the device from the normal one, the red, green, or blue LED lights up, and all other controls now represent a different function. The state-button can be set to act as a temporary shift button that works while it is pressed, a toggle button, or it can be set to work until it is pressed again. In total, this allows up to 104 different functions. The software can recognize games by their executable filename
Filename
The filename is metadata about a file; a string used to uniquely identify a file stored on the file system. Different file systems impose different restrictions on length and allowed characters on filenames.A filename includes one or more of these components:...
s, and automatically load the appropriate profile when that game is started. User-created profiles, which are technically single files, can be submitted to Belkin via e-mail, making them available for others to download.
The ability to add macros allows users to more easily work with data in spreadsheets and similar programs by creating a row of: Cut, Copy, Paste, and Enter keys, and by making the D-pad emulate the arrow keys.
Belkin n52te
Starting January 2008 (delayed from November 2007) an updated version called the Belkin n52te will be sold. This version does not feature the word "Nostromo", and has the additional "te", meaning "tournament edition".http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatProductPage.process?Product_Id=390404 The device is black and has a blue backlit keypad and scroll wheel. The user can "hot-swap" player profiles, a capability supported by built-in memory. The device runs software created by RazerRazer USA Ltd
Razer is a privately held computer peripherals manufacturer specializing in products specifically marketed to gamers.Razer's main slogan is 'FOR GAMERS, BY GAMERS'....
.
Since the n52te was released however, many fans of the original have voiced their concerns that the n52te is lacking several features that were present in the original n52, mostly within the profiling software produced by Razer which has been criticized by owners of the original as being significantly less sophisticated than the original Belkin software.
Examples of missing features are:
- The ability to rename keymaps to indicate their function, rather than just displaying the raw keystroke.
- The ability to convert old n52 profiles for use on the n52te. Many n52te purchasers got them to replace their original n52 controllers and were displeased when they learned they would have to redo all their carefully constructed profiles.
- Lack of a null, unswitched state for the keymaps, essentially reducing the mappable key count by 23 as the n52te only utilises the blue, green and red switch states for mapping.
- The ability to copy keymaps between switch states.
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See also
- Game controllerGame controllerA game controller is a device used with games or entertainment systems used to control a playable character or object, or otherwise provide input in a computer game. A controller is typically connected to a game console or computer by means of a wire, cord or nowadays, by means of wireless connection...
- WASD
- Gamepad translatorGamepad translatorA gamepad translator is a software that takes input from a gamepad and translates it to key strokes or mouse actions.- Lack of gamepad support :...
– A software solution which uses generic computer gamepads